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The Grace of Giving
The Grace of Giving
November 16, 2025 – The Grace of Giving – 2 Corinthians 8:1-12
2 Corinthians 8:1-12 highlights the “grace of giving” by praising the Macedonian churches for their extreme generosity despite poverty and suffering. This passage uses them as an example for the Corinthian church to encourage their own giving, emphasizing that true generosity comes from a willing heart, is an act of God’s grace, and is inspired by Jesus’s sacrifice. The core message is that willingness and a sincere heart are more important than the amount given, and that believers should complete what they have started in giving.
Key themes and points
2 Corinthians 8:1-12
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Encouragement to Be Generous
8 We want you to know, brothers and sisters, about the grace of God that has been granted to the churches of Macedonia, 2 for during a severe ordeal of affliction their abundant joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. 3 For, as I can testify, they voluntarily gave according to their means and even beyond their means, 4 begging us earnestly for the favor[a] of partnering in this ministry to the saints, 5 and not as we expected. Instead, they gave themselves first to the Lord and, by the will of God, to us, 6 so that we might urge Titus that, as he had already made a beginning, so he should also complete this generous undertaking[b] among you. 7 Now as you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in utmost eagerness, and in our love for you[c]—so we want you to excel also in this generous undertaking.[d]
8 I do not say this as a command, but I am, by mentioning the eagerness of others, testing the genuineness of your love. 9 For you know the generous act[e] of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich. 10 And in this matter I am giving my opinion: it is beneficial for you who began last year not only to do something but even to desire to do something. 11 Now finish doing it, so that your eagerness may be matched by completing it according to your means. 12 For if the eagerness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what one does not have.
Tags:
The Grace of Giving Transcript
“Let us pray. Holy Spirit, pour out upon us wisdom and understanding, that being taught by you in Holy Scripture, our hearts and minds may be opened to receive all that leads to life and holiness, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
The scriptures taken from the second letter to the Corinthians, the eighth chapter, we’re going to read the first 15 verses. And now, brothers and sisters, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian Church in the midst of a very severe trial. Their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity.
For I testified that they gave as much as they were able and even beyond their ability, entirely on their own. They urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing this service to the Lord’s people. And they went beyond our expectation, having given themselves first of all to the Lord.”
“They gave themselves by the will of God also to us. So we urged Titus, just as he had earlier made a beginning, to bring also to completion this act of grace on your part. But since you excel in everything, in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in the love we have kindled in you, see that you also excel in this grace of giving.
I am not commanding you, but I want to test the sincerity of your love by comparing it with earnestness of others. For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he were rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you, through his poverty, might become rich. And here is my judgment about what is best for you in this matter.
“Last year, you were the first, not only to give, but also to have the desire to do so. Now finish the work, so that your eager willingness to do it may be matched by your completion of it according to your means. For if the willingness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what one does not have.
Our desire is not that others might be relieved while you are hard pressed, but that there might be equality. At the present time, your plenty will supply what they need, so that in turn, their plenty will supply what you need. The goal is equality, as it is written.
The one who has gathered much did not have too much, and the one who gathered little did not have too little. The word of God for the people of God. Thanks be to God.”
“Thank you, Rosa, for reading our scripture for us. And Mike, thank you for your report. I know y’all are all just as grateful as I am for his leadership to our church and all our trustees.
Can we say thank you? Thank you, guys.
Thank you, thank you. And thank you to all of you that continue to support their mission through your giving. It is making a difference.
It really is. And it is preparing us for a celebration that we have out on the horizon. Our 200th anniversary.
And we’re gonna throw a big shim big around here. We’re gonna start preparing for it in a couple of years. So we’re gonna be talking more about that as we move along.”
“Now, last week, we started the series called Sow Generously, Reap Abundantly. As we talk about our vision and stewardship for the upcoming year. And last week, the message title was The Enemy Inside.
I encourage you to go back and listen to that if you weren’t here. Before we can begin to live out this biblical principle of sowing generously and reaping abundantly, we have to confront this enemy within this saboteur to generosity. And last week, we named that enemy.
We unpacked it a little bit. What am I talking about? Greed.
Paul says there’s something lurking beneath the surface of every human heart. And Jesus warns us to watch out, because greed is the one sin that never volunteers for identification. Nobody thinks that they’re greedy.”
“Nobody wants to admit to that. You know, I’ve had a lot of people come into my office over the years and confess some really interesting things going on in their life. But I’ve never had anyone walk into my office and say, Pastor, my problem is, I love money too much.
I’ve never admitted to that. That person does not exist. We learned that last week that greed is really not a money issue.
It’s a heart issue. It’s a matter of trust. Greed says, that voice inside, it speaks, and it says to us, that I owe me.
It hides behind words like, well, I’m just being wise. I’m being responsible. I’m hard working.
But underneath it is fear. Fear that there won’t be enough. Fear that God won’t come through for me the way that I want him to.
This is clearly seen in that parable of the rich young fool. His problem wasn’t that he succeeded. It was that he assumed that everything he has, that he had in his life, was for his own consumption and security.
“But the Bible gives us the cure to greed, the antidote, it’s generosity. You see, every time we give, we declare that our trust is not in what we earn or deserve, or in our money or anything else in this world, but that our trust is in the Lord. It’s in God.
And so that’s the journey of the series that I’m wanting us to take. It’s defeating this enemy inside so that we can live more open handed and free. Now today, Paul takes us deeper and further along in this journey.
So if greed is the enemy inside, then grace is the power that frees us. Grace, we heard a lot about grace in that scripture reading that Rosa shared. So let’s revisit it.”
“Let’s listen in as Paul writes to the Corinthians about what he calls the grace of giving. The grace of giving. And he paints a portrait of this grace for us as we look into this passage, especially the first five verses.
Paul begins with the example of generosity that’s kind of resonating in his heart as he writes. And this example is the Macedonian churches. He says, we want you to know about the grace of God, for in a severe test of affliction, their abundance of joy and their extreme property have overflowed in a wealth of generosity.
You see, Paul is reminding the Corinthians that this offering that was given by the Macedonians for the Christians living in Jerusalem, this was a relief effort that Paul was championing on his missionary journeys. He was raising funding to help the Christians in Jerusalem. And it had been a long-term project.”
“Paul had been trying to raise these funds for about a year across the churches in these Roman provinces of Macedonia, Galatia, and Achaea. And these churches throughout these provinces around the northern part of the Mediterranean had been responding to this call of famine relief. But notice how Paul describes the Macedonians’ hearts.
An abundance of joy amid their own extreme poverty. And yet, somehow, there was an overflowing generosity. You know, when you think about that math, it doesn’t add up.
An abundance of joy in the midst of poverty, somehow resulting in generosity, it doesn’t add up unless the grace of God is involved. Reminds me of a mission trip I went on several years ago. It was one of the first mission trips I went on to Mexico.”
“One weekend, we traveled high up into the mountains to preach and share the gospel in this farming community where they harvested pine trees. Hard working community. They didn’t have very much in that community.
They just got by off of what they could raise and generate a little income to provide for their families. But one evening before our worship service, there was a family that invited us into their home. Their heat and cooking was from this 55-gallon drum that they created a fire inside.
And on the top of it was the cooktop. And I remember watching this elderly Mexican woman form tortillas with her hands out of little balls of dough. And she would press them out into these tortillas and she’d bake them on top of that stove.”
“And that evening, they provided a meal for us. And we knew in consuming that meal that it meant that that family, those that contributed to that meal, probably wouldn’t have much to eat on for several days afterwards. But yet, they wanted to provide for us.
And they gave out of their little, but it was an abundance for us. And it spoke of their faith, and their joy and their generosity in doing it. They sacrificially offered food to our team.
This is what’s going on in the region of Macedonia, among the churches in Philippi and Thessalonica. So, Paul says that this generosity, this gift of grace, this grace of giving, that it welled up in this abundance among them. Paul tells us that they gave according to their means, and even beyond their means.”
“And Paul says that they were actually begging him to take place in this relief offering. And they gave themselves first to the Lord, and then they gave this offering to Paul. You see, these folks, they begged Paul to be able to participate.
You know, that’s a pastor’s dream, isn’t it? When people are begging to give. But you know, it’s so rare that I’ve never once had anyone come up to me and say, Pastor, I’m begging you, pass those offering plates again.
I just want to give some more. It just doesn’t really happen that like that in the life of the church, does it? But you know what?”
“The value of the gift wasn’t the point. The monetary value of the gift. Their devotion was.
Their devotion.
They weren’t giving dollars. They were giving themselves to God. Their generosity wasn’t an act, or it was an act of worship.”
“Before, it was an act of charity. And Paul says to the Corinthians, and he says to us too, that this is what grace can do in the heart of a person that is yielded to God. The Grace of Giving.
In verses 6 and 9 in this letter, Paul sends Titus to complete this act of grace in Corinth, he says. That phrase, act of grace, that’s the key. And here’s Paul’s definition of that act of grace.
The grace of giving is generosity given in response to generosity received. You see, it’s not guilt giving. It’s not pressure giving.
It’s not, I guess I should, giving. It’s reciprocal grace. Grace received from God becomes grace flowing into the lives of others.”
“You see, the grace of giving is a double blessing. It is a double grace. And Paul goes on to talk about that in verse 9 when he says, For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.
And he says, Though he was rich, he became poor, so that we who are poor might become rich. You see, that’s the gospel. The gospel demonstrates the grace of giving.
Jesus, who was rich in the fullness of the divine life, as we declared in the Nazian creed, he emptied himself. The Creator stepped into the creation and took on our humanity. He became poor by being crucified with criminals and thieves.
All he had to give, Jesus gave. His very life, he gave. This gift of grace is our richest gain.”
“For he has given us riches that we could never earn on our own. Reconciliation with God, a new life, eternal life for the future, and resurrection hope. But Paul says, in essence, how could people who have received that much grace not become conduits of that grace toward others?
That’s the Macedonian example. That is the grace of giving. Paul goes on to mention that there are three principles of this grace of giving.
In verse 7, he gives us the first one. He talks about how we can grow in the grace of giving. He says to the Corinthians, as you excel in everything, see that you excel in this act of grace also.
Paul is saying that growth in generosity is as normal for a Christian as growth in prayer, as growth in faith, as growth in knowledge and service and love. So how do we know if we are growing in the grace of giving? Paul hands us the Macedonians as a mirror to compare ourselves to.”
“Do I give with joy? Or do I give with the same enthusiasm I have when I’m doing yard work in the first part of November? A little bit begrudgingly, I have to do it.
You know, we can’t monetize our service to God, but if we could, maybe we ask ourselves this question. Is my gift of service a generous offering to God and His Church? Or we might ask ourselves a question like this.
Do I value what I put in the offering plate as a gift of worship?
Or we might ask ourselves, is my giving sacrificial or is it safe? You see, growth is possible, but it takes intentionality. The second principle that Paul gives us about growing in this gift of grace comes in verse 8.
He says, generosity tests the sincerity of our love. Paul writes, I’m not commanding you, but I want to test the sincerity of your love. Paul makes it clear, nobody is forcing anyone here.”
“Love can’t be squeezed out by guilt. And this is the true test of our priorities. It’s like saying, we want to get into shape, but we have a long-term committed relationship to Chick-fil-A.
That we just can’t end. You see, generosity is a very real test of what we say we love. If I say I love God, does my time, my money, and my service reflect that?
If I say I love my church, am I supporting it? If I say I care about something, am I taking responsibility for it? You see, Paul is showing them, your giving doesn’t just fund a mission, it reveals what’s lurking in your heart.
And then finally, another principle of growing in the gift of this grace of giving is found in the final verses, 10-15. You see, generosity is expressed with what you have, not what you don’t have. Paul tells them, you had the desire last year, talking to the Corinthians, you had the desire to give toward this relief effort last year.”
“It’s been a year. Now finish what you started. They may have hesitated because they didn’t think the gift was quite big enough yet.
That’s speculatory. But Paul goes on to say, If the willingness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what one doesn’t have. In other words, if you wait until you feel like you have enough to give, then guess what?
You won’t give. If you’re waiting for the perfect time to be generous, I’ve got news for you, it doesn’t exist, though. If you’re thinking, I’ll give once I get that raise, or once the kids finish school, or once Christmas is over, once my Amazon cart shrinks, how big’s your Amazon cart right now?
If we think we’ll give once we have all of those things accomplished, we won’t. When I have more is always one step away. The answer to how much is enough is always what?
Just a little bit more. So Paul says, start where you are. Give what you can now.”
“Obey God now. Grace isn’t waiting for a perfect future, it’s responding to God in the present. It’s like all these gift boxes here today.
It may feel like we aren’t giving much, but I can tell you that these small gifts, that they open hearts of the recipients of them in order to experience a greater gift. The message of the gospel.
So Paul closes this section with a vision. He says, at the present time, your plenty will supply what they need. The goal is fairness, doing what’s fair.
You see, in God’s economy, generosity creates a holy balance, where everyone’s needs are met, and everyone is participating, and everyone is experiencing God’s blessing.
When your present abundance meets their present need, God gets the glory. And one day, when you have a need, Paul says someone else’s abundance will meet yours. This is how the body of Christ works.”
“This is how the kingdom of God advances. This is the grace of giving. So the question isn’t, how much do I have to give?
The real question is, what does grace want to do through me with what I have today, right now? We’ve all received grace from Jesus. Now let that grace overflow.
Give what you can, start where you are. Let grace move from your heart to your hands, and then out to the world. Because when grace becomes giving, everyone has enough.
Let us prepare our hearts for prayer as we…
Let us pray. Grace of Gracious God, we thank you for the grace that first came to us, the grace that met us in our need, the grace that saved us through Jesus Christ, the grace that has made us rich in mercy, hope, and new life. Lord, we confess that fear still whispers to us, we worry that we won’t have enough, we hold tightly to what you have placed in our hands.
“Today, we ask that you would free us from that. Release us from this enemy within, and fill us with the same joy that you poured into the Macedonian Christian. A joy that overflows in generosity.
Lord, teach us to give ourselves first to you, so that everything else flows out of our devotion and our worship to you. Grow us in this grace. We pray that you would stretch our faith.
Help us to trust that when we sow generously, that you are faithful to provide abundantly. And God, make us into a community where every person’s plenty supplies another’s need, where no one stands alone, and where your love moves freely through your people. Let this church, God, be a living picture of the Gospel.
Grace received, grace given, grace shared. Lord, we ask that you take what we have, our time, our resources, our gifts, our lives. Use them for your kingdom.”
“Make us joyful, willing, and obedient stewards who trust that, God, you are enough, and you will always provide. God, we give ourselves to you again in the strong and generous name of Jesus.
Receive now this benediction. Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of His glory with great joy. To the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ, our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion and authority before all time and now and forever.
Amen. God bless you.
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The Grace of Giving
November 16, 2025 – The Grace of Giving – 2 Corinthians 8:1-12
2 Corinthians 8:1-12 highlights the “grace of giving” by praising the Macedonian churches for their extreme generosity despite poverty and suffering. This passage uses them as an example for the Corinthian church to encourage their own giving, emphasizing that true generosity comes from a willing heart, is an act of God’s grace, and is inspired by Jesus’s sacrifice. The core message is that willingness and a sincere heart are more important than the amount given, and that believers should complete what they have started in giving.
Key themes and points
2 Corinthians 8:1-12
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Encouragement to Be Generous
8 We want you to know, brothers and sisters, about the grace of God that has been granted to the churches of Macedonia, 2 for during a severe ordeal of affliction their abundant joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. 3 For, as I can testify, they voluntarily gave according to their means and even beyond their means, 4 begging us earnestly for the favor[a] of partnering in this ministry to the saints, 5 and not as we expected. Instead, they gave themselves first to the Lord and, by the will of God, to us, 6 so that we might urge Titus that, as he had already made a beginning, so he should also complete this generous undertaking[b] among you. 7 Now as you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in utmost eagerness, and in our love for you[c]—so we want you to excel also in this generous undertaking.[d]
8 I do not say this as a command, but I am, by mentioning the eagerness of others, testing the genuineness of your love. 9 For you know the generous act[e] of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich. 10 And in this matter I am giving my opinion: it is beneficial for you who began last year not only to do something but even to desire to do something. 11 Now finish doing it, so that your eagerness may be matched by completing it according to your means. 12 For if the eagerness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what one does not have.
Tags:
The Grace of Giving Transcript
“Let us pray. Holy Spirit, pour out upon us wisdom and understanding, that being taught by you in Holy Scripture, our hearts and minds may be opened to receive all that leads to life and holiness, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
The scriptures taken from the second letter to the Corinthians, the eighth chapter, we’re going to read the first 15 verses. And now, brothers and sisters, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian Church in the midst of a very severe trial. Their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity.
For I testified that they gave as much as they were able and even beyond their ability, entirely on their own. They urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing this service to the Lord’s people. And they went beyond our expectation, having given themselves first of all to the Lord.”
“They gave themselves by the will of God also to us. So we urged Titus, just as he had earlier made a beginning, to bring also to completion this act of grace on your part. But since you excel in everything, in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in the love we have kindled in you, see that you also excel in this grace of giving.
I am not commanding you, but I want to test the sincerity of your love by comparing it with earnestness of others. For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he were rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you, through his poverty, might become rich. And here is my judgment about what is best for you in this matter.
“Last year, you were the first, not only to give, but also to have the desire to do so. Now finish the work, so that your eager willingness to do it may be matched by your completion of it according to your means. For if the willingness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what one does not have.
Our desire is not that others might be relieved while you are hard pressed, but that there might be equality. At the present time, your plenty will supply what they need, so that in turn, their plenty will supply what you need. The goal is equality, as it is written.
The one who has gathered much did not have too much, and the one who gathered little did not have too little. The word of God for the people of God. Thanks be to God.”
“Thank you, Rosa, for reading our scripture for us. And Mike, thank you for your report. I know y’all are all just as grateful as I am for his leadership to our church and all our trustees.
Can we say thank you? Thank you, guys.
Thank you, thank you. And thank you to all of you that continue to support their mission through your giving. It is making a difference.
It really is. And it is preparing us for a celebration that we have out on the horizon. Our 200th anniversary.
And we’re gonna throw a big shim big around here. We’re gonna start preparing for it in a couple of years. So we’re gonna be talking more about that as we move along.”
“Now, last week, we started the series called Sow Generously, Reap Abundantly. As we talk about our vision and stewardship for the upcoming year. And last week, the message title was The Enemy Inside.
I encourage you to go back and listen to that if you weren’t here. Before we can begin to live out this biblical principle of sowing generously and reaping abundantly, we have to confront this enemy within this saboteur to generosity. And last week, we named that enemy.
We unpacked it a little bit. What am I talking about? Greed.
Paul says there’s something lurking beneath the surface of every human heart. And Jesus warns us to watch out, because greed is the one sin that never volunteers for identification. Nobody thinks that they’re greedy.”
“Nobody wants to admit to that. You know, I’ve had a lot of people come into my office over the years and confess some really interesting things going on in their life. But I’ve never had anyone walk into my office and say, Pastor, my problem is, I love money too much.
I’ve never admitted to that. That person does not exist. We learned that last week that greed is really not a money issue.
It’s a heart issue. It’s a matter of trust. Greed says, that voice inside, it speaks, and it says to us, that I owe me.
It hides behind words like, well, I’m just being wise. I’m being responsible. I’m hard working.
But underneath it is fear. Fear that there won’t be enough. Fear that God won’t come through for me the way that I want him to.
This is clearly seen in that parable of the rich young fool. His problem wasn’t that he succeeded. It was that he assumed that everything he has, that he had in his life, was for his own consumption and security.
“But the Bible gives us the cure to greed, the antidote, it’s generosity. You see, every time we give, we declare that our trust is not in what we earn or deserve, or in our money or anything else in this world, but that our trust is in the Lord. It’s in God.
And so that’s the journey of the series that I’m wanting us to take. It’s defeating this enemy inside so that we can live more open handed and free. Now today, Paul takes us deeper and further along in this journey.
So if greed is the enemy inside, then grace is the power that frees us. Grace, we heard a lot about grace in that scripture reading that Rosa shared. So let’s revisit it.”
“Let’s listen in as Paul writes to the Corinthians about what he calls the grace of giving. The grace of giving. And he paints a portrait of this grace for us as we look into this passage, especially the first five verses.
Paul begins with the example of generosity that’s kind of resonating in his heart as he writes. And this example is the Macedonian churches. He says, we want you to know about the grace of God, for in a severe test of affliction, their abundance of joy and their extreme property have overflowed in a wealth of generosity.
You see, Paul is reminding the Corinthians that this offering that was given by the Macedonians for the Christians living in Jerusalem, this was a relief effort that Paul was championing on his missionary journeys. He was raising funding to help the Christians in Jerusalem. And it had been a long-term project.”
“Paul had been trying to raise these funds for about a year across the churches in these Roman provinces of Macedonia, Galatia, and Achaea. And these churches throughout these provinces around the northern part of the Mediterranean had been responding to this call of famine relief. But notice how Paul describes the Macedonians’ hearts.
An abundance of joy amid their own extreme poverty. And yet, somehow, there was an overflowing generosity. You know, when you think about that math, it doesn’t add up.
An abundance of joy in the midst of poverty, somehow resulting in generosity, it doesn’t add up unless the grace of God is involved. Reminds me of a mission trip I went on several years ago. It was one of the first mission trips I went on to Mexico.”
“One weekend, we traveled high up into the mountains to preach and share the gospel in this farming community where they harvested pine trees. Hard working community. They didn’t have very much in that community.
They just got by off of what they could raise and generate a little income to provide for their families. But one evening before our worship service, there was a family that invited us into their home. Their heat and cooking was from this 55-gallon drum that they created a fire inside.
And on the top of it was the cooktop. And I remember watching this elderly Mexican woman form tortillas with her hands out of little balls of dough. And she would press them out into these tortillas and she’d bake them on top of that stove.”
“And that evening, they provided a meal for us. And we knew in consuming that meal that it meant that that family, those that contributed to that meal, probably wouldn’t have much to eat on for several days afterwards. But yet, they wanted to provide for us.
And they gave out of their little, but it was an abundance for us. And it spoke of their faith, and their joy and their generosity in doing it. They sacrificially offered food to our team.
This is what’s going on in the region of Macedonia, among the churches in Philippi and Thessalonica. So, Paul says that this generosity, this gift of grace, this grace of giving, that it welled up in this abundance among them. Paul tells us that they gave according to their means, and even beyond their means.”
“And Paul says that they were actually begging him to take place in this relief offering. And they gave themselves first to the Lord, and then they gave this offering to Paul. You see, these folks, they begged Paul to be able to participate.
You know, that’s a pastor’s dream, isn’t it? When people are begging to give. But you know, it’s so rare that I’ve never once had anyone come up to me and say, Pastor, I’m begging you, pass those offering plates again.
I just want to give some more. It just doesn’t really happen that like that in the life of the church, does it? But you know what?”
“The value of the gift wasn’t the point. The monetary value of the gift. Their devotion was.
Their devotion.
They weren’t giving dollars. They were giving themselves to God. Their generosity wasn’t an act, or it was an act of worship.”
“Before, it was an act of charity. And Paul says to the Corinthians, and he says to us too, that this is what grace can do in the heart of a person that is yielded to God. The Grace of Giving.
In verses 6 and 9 in this letter, Paul sends Titus to complete this act of grace in Corinth, he says. That phrase, act of grace, that’s the key. And here’s Paul’s definition of that act of grace.
The grace of giving is generosity given in response to generosity received. You see, it’s not guilt giving. It’s not pressure giving.
It’s not, I guess I should, giving. It’s reciprocal grace. Grace received from God becomes grace flowing into the lives of others.”
“You see, the grace of giving is a double blessing. It is a double grace. And Paul goes on to talk about that in verse 9 when he says, For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.
And he says, Though he was rich, he became poor, so that we who are poor might become rich. You see, that’s the gospel. The gospel demonstrates the grace of giving.
Jesus, who was rich in the fullness of the divine life, as we declared in the Nazian creed, he emptied himself. The Creator stepped into the creation and took on our humanity. He became poor by being crucified with criminals and thieves.
All he had to give, Jesus gave. His very life, he gave. This gift of grace is our richest gain.”
“For he has given us riches that we could never earn on our own. Reconciliation with God, a new life, eternal life for the future, and resurrection hope. But Paul says, in essence, how could people who have received that much grace not become conduits of that grace toward others?
That’s the Macedonian example. That is the grace of giving. Paul goes on to mention that there are three principles of this grace of giving.
In verse 7, he gives us the first one. He talks about how we can grow in the grace of giving. He says to the Corinthians, as you excel in everything, see that you excel in this act of grace also.
Paul is saying that growth in generosity is as normal for a Christian as growth in prayer, as growth in faith, as growth in knowledge and service and love. So how do we know if we are growing in the grace of giving? Paul hands us the Macedonians as a mirror to compare ourselves to.”
“Do I give with joy? Or do I give with the same enthusiasm I have when I’m doing yard work in the first part of November? A little bit begrudgingly, I have to do it.
You know, we can’t monetize our service to God, but if we could, maybe we ask ourselves this question. Is my gift of service a generous offering to God and His Church? Or we might ask ourselves a question like this.
Do I value what I put in the offering plate as a gift of worship?
Or we might ask ourselves, is my giving sacrificial or is it safe? You see, growth is possible, but it takes intentionality. The second principle that Paul gives us about growing in this gift of grace comes in verse 8.
He says, generosity tests the sincerity of our love. Paul writes, I’m not commanding you, but I want to test the sincerity of your love. Paul makes it clear, nobody is forcing anyone here.”
“Love can’t be squeezed out by guilt. And this is the true test of our priorities. It’s like saying, we want to get into shape, but we have a long-term committed relationship to Chick-fil-A.
That we just can’t end. You see, generosity is a very real test of what we say we love. If I say I love God, does my time, my money, and my service reflect that?
If I say I love my church, am I supporting it? If I say I care about something, am I taking responsibility for it? You see, Paul is showing them, your giving doesn’t just fund a mission, it reveals what’s lurking in your heart.
And then finally, another principle of growing in the gift of this grace of giving is found in the final verses, 10-15. You see, generosity is expressed with what you have, not what you don’t have. Paul tells them, you had the desire last year, talking to the Corinthians, you had the desire to give toward this relief effort last year.”
“It’s been a year. Now finish what you started. They may have hesitated because they didn’t think the gift was quite big enough yet.
That’s speculatory. But Paul goes on to say, If the willingness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what one doesn’t have. In other words, if you wait until you feel like you have enough to give, then guess what?
You won’t give. If you’re waiting for the perfect time to be generous, I’ve got news for you, it doesn’t exist, though. If you’re thinking, I’ll give once I get that raise, or once the kids finish school, or once Christmas is over, once my Amazon cart shrinks, how big’s your Amazon cart right now?
If we think we’ll give once we have all of those things accomplished, we won’t. When I have more is always one step away. The answer to how much is enough is always what?
Just a little bit more. So Paul says, start where you are. Give what you can now.”
“Obey God now. Grace isn’t waiting for a perfect future, it’s responding to God in the present. It’s like all these gift boxes here today.
It may feel like we aren’t giving much, but I can tell you that these small gifts, that they open hearts of the recipients of them in order to experience a greater gift. The message of the gospel.
So Paul closes this section with a vision. He says, at the present time, your plenty will supply what they need. The goal is fairness, doing what’s fair.
You see, in God’s economy, generosity creates a holy balance, where everyone’s needs are met, and everyone is participating, and everyone is experiencing God’s blessing.
When your present abundance meets their present need, God gets the glory. And one day, when you have a need, Paul says someone else’s abundance will meet yours. This is how the body of Christ works.”
“This is how the kingdom of God advances. This is the grace of giving. So the question isn’t, how much do I have to give?
The real question is, what does grace want to do through me with what I have today, right now? We’ve all received grace from Jesus. Now let that grace overflow.
Give what you can, start where you are. Let grace move from your heart to your hands, and then out to the world. Because when grace becomes giving, everyone has enough.
Let us prepare our hearts for prayer as we…
Let us pray. Grace of Gracious God, we thank you for the grace that first came to us, the grace that met us in our need, the grace that saved us through Jesus Christ, the grace that has made us rich in mercy, hope, and new life. Lord, we confess that fear still whispers to us, we worry that we won’t have enough, we hold tightly to what you have placed in our hands.
“Today, we ask that you would free us from that. Release us from this enemy within, and fill us with the same joy that you poured into the Macedonian Christian. A joy that overflows in generosity.
Lord, teach us to give ourselves first to you, so that everything else flows out of our devotion and our worship to you. Grow us in this grace. We pray that you would stretch our faith.
Help us to trust that when we sow generously, that you are faithful to provide abundantly. And God, make us into a community where every person’s plenty supplies another’s need, where no one stands alone, and where your love moves freely through your people. Let this church, God, be a living picture of the Gospel.
Grace received, grace given, grace shared. Lord, we ask that you take what we have, our time, our resources, our gifts, our lives. Use them for your kingdom.”
“Make us joyful, willing, and obedient stewards who trust that, God, you are enough, and you will always provide. God, we give ourselves to you again in the strong and generous name of Jesus.
Receive now this benediction. Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of His glory with great joy. To the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ, our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion and authority before all time and now and forever.
Amen. God bless you.